Maharashtra: Forest Department begins to prepare for future forest fires

Even as officials from Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) said that they have begun their preparations to fight forest fires much in advance this year, wildlife activists have urged forest department to also set up a team comprising of trained volunteers for help during such fires.

"Though the fire in Goregaon hillocks was on a private area, our staff of 40 people helped the fire brigade officials to contain the fire quickly. After the incident, we decided to begin our own preparations to manage forest fires in and around SGNP from now itself, which normally begins in February," said Chief Conservator of Forest (CCF) and Director of SGNP Anwar Ahmed.

Ahmed shared that he has already put a 300-member team of fire watchers, which was formed last year, on alert. "We have modern fire-fighting equipments and are planning to procure some early fire detection equipments this year that can help us detect fire quickly and identify the location early," he said, adding that 99 per cent of fires set in and around SGNP forest were man-made. Containing forest fires, especially after March, when the entire forest is dry and full of leaf litter are extremely difficult to control.

As per forest officials, the most important aspect of managing a forest fire is early detection. "We already have some towers and by January, more towers will be set up along important areas to keep a watch on forest fires. Once its detected, the various teams are dispatched. These teams then contain the fire by cutting the fuel as they clear bushes and dried leaves ahead to ensure the fire stops spreading," said a senior official. It is one of the toughest jobs as fire spreads rapidly, the official added.

Pawan Sharma, Wildlife Warden for Thane, said that the need of the hour was also to have several teams of trained citizen volunteers who could help forest department in fighting such fires. "In March this year, there was a major fire in Yeoor range of SGNP. As the news spread, in few hours, over 40 nature lovers from as far as Kandivali and Dombivali rushed to Mulund to help the forest department. We would suggest the forest department to begin workshops for training interested citizens as well as members of NGO's and wildlife lovers to help the department manage forest fires during a situation of crisis," he said.